e in
return."

The old man waved his hand. "Plaintee tam mak' Musq'oosis a gift some
day," he said.

Sam looked up at the name. "So you're Musq'oosis?" he asked, hardening
a little.

"W'at you know about me?" queried the other mildly.

"Oh, nothing!" returned Sam. "Somebody told me about you."

"I guess it was Bela," said Musq'oosis. With kindly guile he added:
"Where is she?"

"You can search me!" muttered Sam.

The tobacco was unexpectedly fragrant. "Ah, good!" exclaimed Sam with
a glance of surprise.

"'Imperial Mixture,'" said Musq'oosis complacently. "I old. Not want
moch. So I buy the best tobacco."

They settled down for a good talk by the fire. Musq'oosis continued to
surprise Sam. On his visit to Nine-Mile Point the old man had been
received with good-natured banter, which he returned in kind. Alone
with Sam, he came out in quite a different character.

Sam made the discovery that a man may have dark skin yet be a
philosopher and a gentleman. Musq'oosis talked of all things from
tobacco to the differences in men.

"White man lak beaver. All tam work don' give a damn!" he observed.
"Red man lak bear. Him lazy. Fat in summer, starve in winter. Got no
sense at all."

Sam laughed. "You've got sense," he said.

Musq'oosis shrugged philosophically. "I not the same lak ot'er men. I
got crooked back, weak legs. I got work sittin' down. So my head is
busy."

He smoked with a reminiscent look.

"When I yo'ng I feel moch bad for cause I got crooked back. But when I
old I think there is good in it. A strong man is lak a moose. Wa! So
big and swift and 'an'some. All tam so busy, got no tam t'ink wit' his
head inside. So w'en he get old his son put him down. He is poor then.
But a weak man he got notin' to do but look lak eagle at ev'ryt'ing
and remember what he see. So w'en he is old he rich inside. W'en a man
get old bad turn to good. Me, w'en I was yo'ng I sore for cause no
woman want me. Now I glad I got no old wife beat a drum wit' her
tongue in my teepee."

"Women! You're right there!" cried Sam explosively. "They're no good.
They're savages! Women confuse and weaken a man; spoil him for a man's
work. I'm done with them!"

A slow smile lighted Musq'oosis ugly old face. "W'en a man talk lak
that," he remarked, "I t'ink pretty soon some woman goin' get him
sure."

"Never!" cried Sam. "Not me!"

"I t'ink so," persisted Musq'oosis. "Man say woman bad, all bad. Come
a woman smile so sweet, he su